The Invisible Truth
by OthersidersLuv101
Summary: This is one of my many Othersiders stories. I just love the show and me and my friends are trying to start a ghosthunting team. Enjoy!
1. A Strange Noise

**Ohtersiders! Ohtersiders are all I've thinking about for months...becasue they're awesome! So I started sreaming this episode up aeound July and then I found Fan Fiction... 'Nuff said =]. Favorite/ Comment/ Enjoy!**

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KC pushed open the old barn door. She looked up at the rotted wood boards that made up

another level to the barn. In the dark, she could faintly see the hay bales piled up on the

top half of the barn. She took out the E.M.F. Detector and moved it around. The

measurement was off the charts. She deemed it best to do some Call and Response. She

walked over to the side of the barn and sat down, her back against the barn door.

"Hello. If anyone is here with me, my name is KC and I come with good intentions."

A crack like sound arose from the old boards. This caught KC's attention. She looked up,

hoping to see something. When she was unsuccessful, she deemed it as something to not

worry about.

"If there is anyone here with me, could you please show yourself?" KC asked, her voice

trembling, heart beating fast.

KC heard another cracking noise from the top of the barn, except this one was

louder and longer. Then, with a brief snapping sound, two hay bales crashed through the

floor. KC screamed, but it was too late. One of the hay bales landed on her left knee,

dislocating it. The other one, landing on KC's hand, broke two of her fingers. The pain

from the heavy hay bales was enough to knock KC out cold.

Meanwhile, Riley was investigating the stables. He was looking around with the

thermal camera when he heard KC's short scream. Not knowing what it was, he

radioed to base camp.

"Riley for base camp."

"Go for base" Zack responded

"Have you heard from KC lately?" Riley asked.

"No I haven't. Why do you ask?" Zack answered, curiosity in his voice.

"I just heard a really strange sound and it sounded like it was coming from where KC was. I think I'm gonna check it out." Riley responded.

"Ok, but be careful." Zack warned his friend.

"I will." Riley finalized the conversation.

Riley exited the stables in a swift walk. Inside, he could feel that something had

happened to KC Within a few minutes he was in front of the barn. He stepped

through the barn door. He shined his flash light around. Then he saw the hay bales.

He couldn't see KC's face, but it didn't take long for him to realize that she was

pinned under the hay bales. He ran over to her and threw the hay bales off to the

side. He then realized that KC wasn't conscious. Riley gently placed his arms

around her. He stood up, KC in his arms. He exited the barn quickly, fearing that if

they stay any longer they could both get hurt. He walked as fast as he could

while still holding KC Riley could see base camp ahead when KC woke up.

"Riley...?" KC asked weakly.

"Shhh, don't speak." Riley responded.

Riley and KC walked into base camp, both exhausted from the experience they had

a few minutes ago. Zack was the only one at base camp, Sam and Jackie were still

investigating.

"What happened!?!?" Zack asked in shock and worry.

"Hay bales fell on her, but we don't know how." Riley responded trying to sound calm.

"I was doing Call and Response, I asked for a sign and I heard a cracking sound. That's all I

remember." KC said weakly.

"Zack, take out your cell phone and call 9-1-1, she needs help."

Zack quickly followed Riley's orders. While Zack was on the phone, Riley

set KC down on the hay that was piled up at the back of base camp. Riley took off his

sweatshirt and put it underneath KC's head. He then realized no one had bothered to tell

Sam and Jackie to come back. He radioed to them letting them know what had happened to

their friend. When he was done he went back to KC's side and sat down next to her. KC

reached and put her arm around Riley's shoulders. Riley smiled down on her. She responded back

with a smile as well. KC opened her mouth and yawned a long yawn.

"Are you ok?" Riley asked worried.

"Yeah, I'm just really tired." KC responded yawning again.

"It's ok, just go to sleep." Riley said yawning himself.

Riley pulled KC up a little and put his arm around her arms. KC rested her head on Riley's

chest. Just then Sam and Jackie walked into base camp, relived to see that KC wasn't dead.

"We got all the cameras on our way back." mentioned Jackie.

"Okay, good. Let's start packing up." said Zack.

"I bet there is some good evidence from the barn." said Sam trying to be optimistic.

"Yeah, maybe we'll find out what happened to KC" said Riley.

Sam, Jackie, and Zack started to pack while Riley held on to KC She seemed to lose all

interest in falling asleep, like she just wanted to stay awake to be with Riley.

"Riley?" KC asked.

"Yeah?" Riley responded.

"Thanks for saving me." KC said looking up at Riley, smiling.

"You're welcome." Riley said smiling, pulling KC closer.

The group heard the sirens now. Sam grabbed the bag with the equipment in

it. Zack grabbed his laptop. Riley stood up holding KC Together, the group walked out to

meet the paramedics. The flashing lights flickered in the foggy night air.

"You guys put the equipment in car and drive down to the hospital. I'll go with KC

and meet you there" Riley said.

As Jackie drove out of the location to the hospital, the ambulance drove in. Two

paramedics unloaded the stretcher from the ambulance and moved it over to Riley

and KC Riley set KC down on the stretcher. The paramedics wheeled her into the

ambulance, Riley close behind them. Riley sat down on the small chair in the back of

the ambulance, next to KC The ambulance turned its sirens on and rolled forward.

"Riley, we are totally going over the evidence in the hospital." KC said with a wink.

"Well I think we're gonna have to; who knows how long they're gonna keep you

cooped up in the hospital." Riley replied.

Within a matter of minutes, Riley and KC were at the hospital. KC was rushed

inside. The doctors gestured Riley to a waiting room.

"Bye, Riley." KC said, upset.

Instead of responding right away, Riley kissed her head and whispered,

"I'll be right here waiting for you." he said with a smile.

KC smiled back up at him as she was rolled down a long hallway with bright lights

and a lot of doors. Riley turned and walked into the waiting room to greet his

friends. They were all busy talking about the investigation. They didn't even notice

him when he walked in.

"Hey guys." Riley said, trying to get their attention.

The group looked up and invited him into the conversation. Sam started talking

about what he and Jackie found on their investigation.

"There was definitely something going on over there." Sam cringed at the memory

"Really?" Riley asked in curiosity.

"Yeah, the thermal camera picked up some weird things,"

"Wasn't that the report; hot and cold spots?"

"Yup."

"And we saw some really weird shadows." Jackie said, joining the conversation.

"Did you guys take pictures?" Riley asked

"Yeah, they're right here on the camera." said Sam moving the camera towards

Riley.

Riley stared at the tiny screen on the camera. There was definitely something with

that place. In the corner of the screen he saw a weird shadow.

"I think you might have caught what you were seeing." Riley said, handing the

back to Sam.

"Really?" said Sam glancing at the camera.

"Hey can I see?" said Jackie, very interested.

"Sure." said Sam handing the camera to her.

Just as Jackie handed the camera back to Sam, a nurse walked into the waiting

room.

"You can see your friend now." she said with a slight smile.

"Great!" said Riley, hopping out of his chair and running out of the waiting room.

Sam and Jackie followed Riley, also eager to see their friend. The nurse led them

down a smaller hallway. She stopped in front of an open door.

"You can stay as long as you want, or until your parents come looking for

you." she said

"Ok, thanks." Riley called as she turned and walked away.

The group of friends hurried over to KC She was covered in tubes that led to a

led to medication and monitors. She smiled up at the worried eyes of her friends.

Riley stared into KC's smiling eyes with deep pain.

"I was so worried about you." he said in a grim tone.

KC smiled at him in sympathy. "Don't worry Riley, I'm ok."

Riley breathed a sigh of relief. "That's great" he said smiling back at her.

Riley had completely forgotten that his fellow Othersiders were still in the room.

"Riley?"

Riley left KC's eyes and looked behind him to see who was talking to him. It was

Sam.

"Yeah?"

"We're gonna head down to the cafeteria." he motioned to his friends behind him,

"Wanna come?"

"Uh no," he glanced back at KC, "I'll stay here"

Riley watched as the group left the room. When they were gone, he met his eyes

back up with KC's.

"So how are you feeling?" said Riley, trying to break the silence.

"Better, I guess. I was never really in pain."

"That's good."

Riley and KC continued to stare in each other's eyes.

"I've never realized how beautiful your eyes are." said KC in astonishment.

"Thanks, yours are really pretty, too."

Riley leaned in closer to KC KC moved her head up a little. Riley closed his eyes

and moved a little closer. KC felt his warm breath get closer to her face. Riley's

lips were now inches from KC's. The door creaked open. Riley noticed it and moved

back fearing KC's parents had arrived. KC sat up some more to get a better view of who was at

the door. It was Sam, Jackie, and Zack.

"You guys are back already?" Riley asked, surprised.

"Yeah, the cafeteria was closed." Zack replied.

"Oh..." Riley said, looking back down on KC

"Why don't we go over some evidence? Sam suggested.

"That's a great idea!" said Jackie.

Jackie started unloading the equipment and Zack got his laptop. Riley was very

curious to find what hurt KC He picked up the camera that was stationed in

the barn. He turned it on and studied the screen as everyone started to look over different

evidence. As KC listened to some sound recordings, she saw, out of the corner of her eye, Riley

cringe at the screen of the camera. She hit the pause button and took off her headphones.

"Riley? What do you see?"

Riley looked up from the screen. "I see something from what put you in here."

The whole group stopped what they were doing and looked up.

"Well what pushed the hay bales on KC?" Jackie asked with curiosity.

Riley motioned the group to come over to the camera. He paused the tape

and pointed to the upper left part of the screen. He hit the play button.

The group stared in astonishment. There was a moving shadow that looked like it was moving up a

the ladder to get to the where the hay bales were. As it climbed the ladder, it moved out of the

camera's view.

"There is no doubt in my mind that that shadow came from who hurt KC" said Riley with pain

in his voice. He looked down at KC who was staring back up at him with a worried

expression.

"Guys, what about our parents?" Sam asked, changing the subject.

"It's too late to call them, let's just stay here." Riley responded looking at his

watch.

"We should probably go to sleep now and look at the evidence later. We'll be more

alert in the morning." Zack responded.

"You're right Zack, let's put the equipment away." Riley agreed.

The group put the equipment back in the bag and looked for a place to sleep. Zack

fell asleep in the suede chair in the back of the room. Jackie and Sam sat on the

couch and fell asleep. Riley fell asleep in the plastic chair, right next to KC.

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**Yay! It gets better in Chapter 2 =]**


	2. Alone

Just read it. You'll know it when you see it ;)

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The white curtains whipped through the gusty autumn wind blowing in through KC's

window. It had been 3 weeks since KC was released from the hospital. Her knee splint had been taken off a few days ago and she was back to her normal self. She and Jackie lay on the floor, textbooks sprawled out around them. They were supposed to be studying, but lost interest in it and decided to talk about the new mall that had opened a few blocks away.

"We totally have to go there!" KC said excitedly.

"Yeah, how about tomorrow?" Jackie suggested, glancing at her watch.

"I'm sorry KC but I have to go baby-sit my neighbor's kid." Jackie said looking up from her watch.

"Ok, I'll text you later and we can make some plans."

"Ok." Jackie said, walking out of KC's room.

KC picked up her laptop from her desk and sat back down on the floor. She started looking up some places to investigate. She had just opened up Google when she heard a strange noise come from her window. She looked up and stared at her window trying to see what it was. Another noise came from the glass. This time she got up and walked over to the window. She noticed a pebble on the window sill. She peered through the open glass and made out a figure. She opened the screen to get a better look at who it was.

"Riley!" KC said with a smile.

Down on the sidewalk stood Riley, arms crossed with a big smile.

"What are you doing here?" asked KC, speaking loudly trying to beat the wind from blowing her voice away.

KC saw Riley's mouth move, but the gusts of wind drowned out any possible sound.

"One second, let me let you in!" KC said almost shouting over the wind.

KC left the window and ran downstairs. She opened the door excitedly. Riley greeted her with a hug.

"What are you doing here?" asked KC confused, "I thought you and Sam were gonna see that new movie."

"Well we were," said Riley matter-a-factly, "but he has a soccer game."

"Well what are you doing here?" KC questioned him, still confused.

"Well I was bored and Zack and Jackie were busy."

"Well c'mon on in, there isn't much to do."

Riley stepped through the door and into the foyer.

"Wanna go into the family room?" Riley asked.

KC nodded and led Riley to the family room. KC sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. Riley sat down next to her.

"So what do you wanna do?" asked KC

"I don't know."

KC looked up at Riley. She became lost in his eyes. KC leaned in closer to Riley. Riley put his arm around KC and pulled her closer. KC felt Riley's warm breath against her face, just like she had at the night at the hospital. Their lips were closer then they had ever been before. All of sudden KC threw her arms around Riley's neck and their lips locked. Riley pulled KC closer to him. After a few seconds, KC reluctantly pulled back. Riley stared at KC, her arms still around his neck. KC looked back at Riley in astonishment. The both of their faces lit up with smiles. Riley gently pushed KC's head closer to his so that their lips were touching again. They were so in depth with the moment that they didn't even realize that Jackie, Sam, and Zack had come over to ask KC if she had wanted to go the mall with them that day. Through the window in the foyer, they could see into the family room. Sam's and Zack's mouths fell open. Jackie crossed her arms and smiled.

"C'mon guys, they're obviously busy." she said with a grin. Zack and Sam followed Jackie off the KC's front porch and down the sidewalk.

Riley and KC slowly pulled away from each other again. KC moved her arms from Riley's neck, but Riley still hugged her close to him.

"Wow." Riley said in astonishment.

"That...was...wow..." KC said, trying to find the right words.

KC stared, still lost in his eyes. In the background, she heard her phone ring. She turned for second to look at her phone. She turned back and continued gaze into Riley's eyes.

"You can go answer your phone." Riley said confused about why she wouldn't.

"Ok, one second." KC said reluctantly leaving Riley's arms.

She got up from the couch and walked over to the coffee table where she had placed her phone. She looked at the small screen on her phone. It was a text from Jackie. She opened her phone up and read the text message. This is what it said:

_Have a good time making out with riley =] sam zack and i will b at the mall._

KC shut her phone and returned to Riley's welcoming arms. Riley hugged her close to him again.

"So who texted you?" Riley asked, questioning KC expression.

"It was Jackie, apparently she saw us..." KC said.

"Well she would've found out sooner or later."

"Found about our kiss?" KC asked.

"No, that I want you to be my girlfriend." Riley said with a smile.

KC looked up at him, confused for a minute. Then a large smile appeared over her face.

"Yes, she would've found out about that." KC said smiling.

Riley hugged her closer. He had expected nothing, but then he felt KC's warm lips touch his cheek. He looked back down at her and pressed his lips against hers again. KC and Riley reluctantly pulled back again when they heard a phone ring. KC looked over to hers, but this time it was Riley's phone. He was holding it when KC turned her head back around.

"Sam just sent me a text. This should be good." Riley said opening his phone.

_Omg dude how did u kiss a girl b4 me :( lol_

"Wow Sam." Riley said return back to the couch.

"What?" KC asked confused.

"Just Sam being funny again."

"Wow."

Just then the clock in KCs hallway chimed. Riley glanced at his watch.

"Sorry KC but I have to go to dinner with my cousins." Riley said grimly.

"Oh ok, I'll text you later." KC said with a smile.

"OK" Riley said turning for the door.

When Riley had stepped out of the front door, KC went back up to her room and began to research more on her laptop. She looked up at the clock after what seemed like a couple of hours, her eyes could barely stay open. The clock read 2:18 AM. KC set aside her laptop and climbed into her bed. She was asleep within 10 minutes.

That night she dreamed about Riley. She and Riley were on a boardwalk watching the sun set. Riley was hugging her next to his side. He closed his eyes and pulled KC around so that she was facing him. He lifted her head slightly and moved his face closer to hers. Suddenly she heard a beeping. The beautiful sunset and Riley slowly dissolved into darkness.

KC eyes fluttered open, the morning light making her blink.

"Aww, it was just a dream." KC said glumly.

She pulled her comforter off of her and stepped onto the cold floor. She changed and walked downstairs. She walked through the family room on her way to the kitchen. She glanced down at her phone and looked at the envelope on the little screen. She picked it up and opened it. She opened up the text message. It was from Zack this time:

_Wow the skeptic falling in love with the believer: crazy stuff_

KC shook her head smirking. She walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. She noticed a note on the table. It was from her parents:

_Dear KC,_

_We will be in the city today. We will see you tonight._

_-Mom and dad_

The city reminded her of her mall plans with Jackie. She walked back over to her phone and quickly dialed Jackie's number.

"Hello?" Jackie answered.

"Hi Jackie, are we going to the mall today?" asked KC

"Yeah, I was waiting for you to call. Oh, and let's invite the boys."Jackie said with a giggle.

"Ok, what time sounds good?"

"I'll be at your house at 11 today."

"Ok, see you at 11."

KC hung up the phone and put it back on the coffee table. She sat on the couch and turned on the TV and started flipping through channels. She was watching Mythbusters when the door bell chimed in the hallway. She grabbed her purse, turned off the TV, and ran over to the front door. There she was greeted by Riley with a hug. He put his arm around her and led her over to the car with the rest of the team members. KC climbed into the front passenger seat of the car. When she slammed the door closed, she heard an eruption of laughter from behind. KC looked back confused. She found Sam and Zack laughing their heads off.

"Guys, stop it." Jackie said, standing up for KC

KC just shook her head and laughed as she turned back around. Riley opened the driver's door and slid into the seat. He slammed the door and started up the car. The wheels began to move.

"So KC, plan to lock lips with Riley again?" Sam said, trying to hold back a laugh, but failing.

"Guys seriously, stop it."Jackie said to the two boys continuing to laugh.

"But seriously KC, how was it." Jackie said speaking over the volcano of laughter.

KC looked and smiled at Riley. Riley was smiling back at her.

"I don't kiss and tell." KC responded smiling.

"It isn't kissing and telling! Tell us!" Sam yelled playfully, attempting to hold back another laugh.

KC looked up at Riley. Riley gave her an approval nod with a smile. KC smiled back in acceptance.

"Well...it was magical." KC said, her voice in a dreamy tone.

KC glanced back at Riley worried that he would be upset. He wasn't looking back at her, but while he was paying attention to the road, she saw a large smile across his smile.

"Awww! That's so cute." Jackie said.

Right after Jackie finished speaking, a roar of laughter arose from the back. KC turned around to see Zack and Sam red in the face from laughing so much. KC rolled her eyes and turned back around. By now they had arrived at the mall, and Riley was searching for a parking spot. Sam and Zack were still laughing uncontrollably when Riley had parked the car. Jackie had to nudge them to make them aware that they had arrived. When they finally got out, they calmed down.

"Okay, now that you two are done laughing, where do we wanna go first?" Riley asked as the group of friends started walking down the parking lot.

"I wanna head to the book store." said Sam, being serious for the first time in the presence of KC and Riley.

"I like that idea, Sam," said Jackie, "let's look for a map and go there."

The group agreed and walked through the large glass doors in the front of the building. KC ran over to the map.

"It's over there." said KC, pointing to the right.

The group followed KC's directions over towards the bookstore. They walked through a large set of wooden doors. Inside, they found a large room that looked more like a library than a bookstore. Sam and Zack immediately ran over to a stand that held books about video games and computers. Jackie walked towards a section called "Paranormal." Riley walked over to the "Teen" section. Before KC knew it, she was all alone. She decided to walk around, hoping to find something. She had walked through "Children's" and "Fantasy" sections by time she had found a section that looked interesting. She had no clue what section she was in, but she decided to see if she could find an interesting book. She skimmed the shelves for an interesting title, or a colorful spine, or anything. She stumbled across a book about ghost stories. She slid her fingers around the spine of the book and pulled it out. She sat down where she was, not bothering to move to the sitting area a few feet away from the shelves. She opened the book and began reading. She became deep into the book; picturing herself in the events between the covers. She had no clue how long she had been reading, until Riley found among the forests of shelves. KC lifted her eyes from the book.

"KC, it's time to go. Sam got bored and wanted to head to food court." Riley said, looking down on KC

"Uh, ok." KC responded, standing up.

KC slipped the book back into the thin opening she had made when she removed it. She walked back over to Riley. KC took Riley's hand and walked with him out of the store. Sam, Zack, and Jackie were waiting for them in the food court. When Sam and Zack saw that Riley and KC were holding hands, they burst out laughing. Jackie rolled her eyes and walked over to them, trying to escape the sounds of laughter from Sam and Zack.

"What took you guys so long?" Jackie asked when she could speak normally over Sam's and Zack's laughter.

"KC found a good book and was reading. I finally found her." Riley replied.

"Okay. So, where do you guys wanna eat? Jackie asked, changing the subject.

"Well I'm not hungry, so my opinion isn't really needed." Riley responded.

"I'm not really hungry either. You guys can just eat what you want." KC said.

"Okay. Well we should probably stay near each other. Ho 'bought you guys go to the coffee place or something." Jackie offered.

"That sounds good to me. Does that sound good to you KC?" Riley responded.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me." KC replied with a smile.

"Ok. Well let's meet back here in an hour." Jackie said.

"Okay." Riley replied.

"See you then." KC added on.

Jackie waved and walked back over to Sam and Zack who had stopped laughing.

"Any clue where the coffee shop is?" Riley asked KC

"I think it's over there, but I'm not sure." KC said pointing to a row of restaurants.

"Well I guess there is one way to find out." Riley replied with a grin.

KC and Riley made their way through a sea of tables towards the string of restaurants. When they finally made it through the tables they looked down the line of restaurants. Sure enough the coffee shop was there. Riley and KC walked over towards the seating area of the shop. Riley stopped in front of a table near the back.

"What do you want?" Riley asked, his expression warm and friendly.

"I just wanna be with you." KC responded, smiling.

"Well OK." Riley replied.

Riley sat down next to KC and took her hand over the table. They sat there, just starring into each others' eyes. Out of the corner of her eye, KC thought she saw someone behind her, but she didn't want to leave Riley's beautiful eyes.

"C'mon you two love birds, we're gonna head over to the arcade." Jackie said from behind KC

Neither Riley nor KC noticed her until she spoke. Reluctantly they stood up from the table and turned to exit. Riley put his arm around KC's waist and they walked together through the crowd, Jackie, Sam, and Zack in front of them.

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And there you go. =)


	3. A New Fear

**By far my favorite chapter to write =] I don't know why but I really liked another sweep. Anyway, Enjoy!**

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KC awoke with a gasp. She flicked her eyes open and looked at the dark surroundings. She realized that she was moving. Then she remembered where she was. The group was driving back from a location. Her thoughts were interrupted by someone speaking.

"Are you ok KC?" a voice asked, the tone worried.

KC looked up to see Riley's face. She breathed a sigh of relief. He was the one person she wanted to be with when she was upset.

"Yeah, just a nightmare." KC replied.

"It's ok, I'm here." Riley said, pulling her onto his lap.

KC then realized that Riley wasn't driving like usual. She adjusted the level of her head to see over the seat. She saw Jackie, maneuvering the steering wheel. Her attention returned back to Riley.

"How much longer?" KC asked with a yawn.

"Probably about 5 minutes." Riley replied, gently stroking her hair.

"Where are we investigating tomorrow?" KC asked, remembering that their school district had given the students two extra days of weekend.

"I don't think we've decided yet. I think that's tomorrows plan." Riley replied.

Just as Riley finished answering KC's question, the car went up a slight incline and stopped. KC sat up, her arms around Riley's waist. Riley opened the car door for her and led her out. When they were both standing in the driveway, Riley put his arm around KC's waist and hugged her closer to his side. She shuddered in the cold of the autumn night. Riley took of his sweatshirt with the sleeves cut off and put it around KC Jackie opened the garage for KC and Riley and went back to the car and attempted to wake Sam and Zack up. Riley helped KC in through the garage back door and into Riley's warm house. Riley led her up the stairs. KC left Riley's side and turned into the room that she and Jackie stayed in whenever they investigated. She went into the bathroom and quickly changed into her dark blue flannel pants and light blue T-shirt. When she exited, Jackie was inside the room on her laptop. From the half open door, KC heard a strange noise followed by laughter. Jackie was so engrossed in her laptop, she didn't even notice. KC slipped out of the bedroom and into the hallway. She walked down the hallway and into Riley's room. Inside she found Sam and Zack laughing hysterically and Riley on the floor with an expression that KC couldn't read.

"What happened?" KC asked, trying to evaluate the scene.

"I was going to sit down on my chair and they moved just before I sat down." Riley replied, his expression still unreadable.

"Really, you guys are laughing about that?" KC asked them.

"I think they're just extremely tired." Riley whispered to KC after a few seconds of unending laughter.

From the hallway, KC heard Jackie complain about something but Sam's and Zack's laughter was just too loud to comprehend a word. Riley got up and walked over to KC

"Well I guess Jackie wants me." KC said glumly.

"Are you gonna be okay tonight? There's gonna be a storm." Riley asked her, his tone worried.

"I hope so." KC replied.

"Well if you're scared, just come here." Riley said whole-heartedly.

"Ok. Goodnight Riley." KC said with a smile.

Riley gently pressed his lips to her forehead.

"Goodnight KC" he said with a soft smile.

KC waved and turned for the hallway. When she walked in, Jackie was ready for bed.

"C'mon KC, we need to get to bed." Jackie said, a trace of annoyance in her voice.

"Okay, okay." KC said, climbing into her bed.

Jackie flipped the light switch off. Jackie fell asleep quickly, but the gentle noise of rain worried KC She knew it was going to get worse, and storms just weren't her thing. She tossed and turned. She eventually fell asleep around 3:00 AM. She awoke at 3:30 to the sound of fierce thunder and blinding lightning coming from the window. KC couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to be in her haven; Riley's arms. That was the one place she felt protected from all of the bad in the world. She threw the comforter off to the side and got out of her bed as quiet as possible. She slid out of the room and down the hallway. She turned towards Riley's door and to her surprise; the lights in his room were still on. KC opened the door a crack. She noticed that only Riley's bedside table lamp was turned on. Riley looked up with a warm expression on his face. To her, that meant that she could come in. She walked over to Riley and sat on the edge of his bed.

"So what now; nightmares, shadows, the storm?" Riley asked, his tone friendly, but unsurprised that KC was freaked out.

"The storm." KC admitted.

Riley smiled and pulled her onto her side. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"It's ok, you're here with me. You don't have to worry." Riley said, soothing KC

But KC was already soothed. She was in her haven. She felt safe. KC fell asleep peacefully in Riley's arms. The storm had ended inside of KC's world. It was a bright cheerful place. It was the perfect setting for the perfect dream that she dreamed that night.

KC awoke to a soft light coming from the windows. Her head was now on Riley's chest, but his arms had stayed around her waist the whole time, protecting her. Her eyes sheepishly opened. She didn't want to wake up yet. She glanced at the alarm clock on Riley's desk. 7:37 AM. KC would be able to get away with another hour or so of sleep. She closed her eyes and let the gentle rain from outside lull her to sleep. She awoke again at a more decent time. When she opened her eyes again, the first thing she realized was that the rain had picked up a little bit and that the morning sun had disappeared behind the clouds. KC put her arms around Riley's chest. Riley groaned, opening his eyes from the light. As soon as she saw his face, her face lit up with a soft smile. Riley smiled back and pulled her closer to him. A slight creak came from the door. KC and Riley both looked up.

"Riley." KC whispered.

Riley pulled her closer and soothed her.

"It's ok, I'm here." Riley said.

KC grasped his waist and hid her head in his chest. She was a little shook up from the storm. What seemed like nothing was a little scarier for KC The door creaked open a little more and then it just full out swung open. In the door frame stood Zack with a large grin and a camera. "Nice going Zack." Sam said, emerging from behind Zack, a camera in his hand as well.

"Oh well. We got some good stuff." Zack said with a smirk.

Jackie shoved past them and grabbed the handle of the door. Jackie paused for a few seconds just grinning at them and then closed the door. Riley looked down at KC who was red from embarrassment. She removed her head from his chest and looked up at him.

"I guess that moment is ruined...again." Riley said, upset.

KC looked down at the floor. She knew that they had to start the investigation, which meant that she had to leave her haven. She looked back up at Riley, who kissed her passionately. Zack just happened to be walking by when he heard Riley and KC He opened the door quietly and stood out in the hallway, taking pictures. Riley blindly felt around his bed for a pillow. He wasn't going to be interrupted by another one of Zack's tricks. When his hand traced a pillow, he grabbed and threw it at the open door. To his surprise, his trick to close the door actually worked. Riley put the hand that he had used to throw the pillow around KC's waist and pulled her onto him. KC pushed back, gasping quietly for air. Riley smiled and helped her sit up. KC looked at the time. 8:03 AM. She really needed to get ready if they were going to investigate. She pulled herself of the side of the bed and got up to her feet. Riley got up as well. Neither of them could stop smiling. Riley walked KC over to the room that she shared with Jackie.

"I'll meet you downstairs in 20 minutes." KC said, leaning on the door frame.

"Sounds good." Riley replied and walked back towards his room.

KC looked around the room. Below her, she could hear Zack, Sam, and Jackie talking about places to investigate. KC walked over next to her bed and took the duffel bag near the side table. She fished trough it, trying to find the outfit she had picked out for that day. When she found it, she stepped in the bathroom and changed. When she was done, she walked over to the staircase and met Riley. He put his arm around her and led her down the stairs. They walked into the garage together, causing Sam and Zack to laugh again, which didn't surprise them. KC sat down on the stool in front of the chalkboard. Riley grabbed an empty stool and moved it next to KC's and took a seat.

"Okay guys; let's pick a place to investigate this week." Jackie said, pulling up a document on her computer with information about some credible places.

"The Mackey Farm." KC repeated the title she read on the screen. KC cringed at the awful memories.

Riley noticed her and put his arm around her in protection. She looked up at him and smiled. She turned her attention back to the computer when Riley's expression changed.

"Whoa, that's creepy!" Sam yelled from across the table.

KC focused on the screen and realized they were still talking about the farm.

"We have to go there!" Zack said excitedly. He had completely forgotten what had happened to KC only a month again.

KC looked back at Riley. He had an on-the-line expression; he knew that KC was going to be petrified of barns for a while, but he also knew that they had to choose the most credible place. He had to take one for the team.

"I really think we should go here. There are a lot of credible reports and I think this would be an easier place to investigate because it's a lot smaller then what we're used to." Riley said.

"Okay, so this week we'll investigate The Mackey Farm." Jackie said, printing the information out.

Sam and Zack nodded and walked over to the gear table and began to pack up.

"Riley, I can't do this." KC whispered to Riley, near tears from the awful memories.

"Don't worry KC I will protect you." Riley replied softly.

"Okay." KC said feeling a little better. She knew she was going to have to get over this fear for the team.

"We're all packed up guys. Let's start putting this in the car." Jackie said grabbing one of the bags of equipment.

Riley helped KC down from the stool and put his arm around her shoulders and led her towards the car.

"Jackie, can you drive today?" Riley yelled over to Jackie.

"Uh, sure. I guess." Jackie called back from behind the car.

"Great!" Riley yelled back smiling.

He opened the door and lifted KC into the back seat. He sat down next to her put his arm around her.

"How long is the drive?" KC asked Riley with a worried expression on her face.

"Like 4 hours." Riley replied with a smile.

KC smiled back and put her arms around Riley's waist, sliding closer to him. She rested her head on his chest. He moved his arms from her and pulled her onto his lap. Jackie climbed into the drivers' seat and started the car. The car slowly backed out of the driveway and onto the road. KC all of a sudden cringed in Riley's firm grip.

"What?" Riley asked in worry.

"Just listen." KC replied, pointing to the Zack and Sam.

Zack and Sam were talking all about an old barn on the location that was supposed to have the most activity. Riley tightened his grip on KC in a protective manner.

"Riley, you know what this means. We have to investigate it." KC said, trembling.

She grabbed onto Riley and hid her head in his chest like she had done earlier. Riley gently stroked her hair, trying to soothe her. KC was so scared she began to sob.

"Shh, shh." Riley soothed. "I'm here."

KC moved her head so that her ear was against Riley's chest. Riley wiped away KC's tears with the back of his hand, which helped KC calmed down. It seemed like Riley's arms were the end to all of her problems.

"KC if it's bothering you so much, we just don't have to go there on one of our sweeps; we could just let the others do it." Riley said, comforting her.

KC exhaled a sigh of relief. That is what she wanted to hear.

"Thanks. It's just too soon." KC admitted, smiling.

"You're welcome." Riley replied, pulling KC closer to him.

KC placed her hands on Riley's head and gently lowered it so that their lips were touching again. Riley slowly pulled back after a few seconds. KC looked over the seat in front of her when she didn't hear the usual laughter. Both Sam and Zack were asleep.

"Finally we can have some peace." KC said with a yawn.

"Are you tired too?" Riley asked her, noticing her yawn.

"A little, but I'd rather stay with you." KC responded looking up at Riley.

"No, you should really go to sleep. You need to be as awake as possible for the investigation." Riley responded.

"I guess you're right." KC said, agreeing with Riley.

KC adjusted her position so that her head was on Riley's chest again and placed her arms around his waist. Riley put his arms around her in a protective manner again. The gentle rain was still falling. The rain and the sway of the car on the highway slowly lulled KC to sleep.

KC awoke a few hours later, her fatigue had been satisfied. She was still in Riley's arms.

"KC?" Riley asked looking down at her.

"Yeah?" KC replied.

"I just wanted to see if you were awake." Riley replied sweetly.

"What time is it?" KC asked, realizing that it still looked fairly early in the day.

"It's about noon." Riley replied, glancing at his watch.

"What are we gonna do before we can investigate?" KC asked.

"Anything we want." Riley said smiling.

"Cool." KC replied, smiling back.

For the rest of the drive, Riley and KC just talked. What seemed like 20 minutes turned into the 4 hours they were driving. Time flew by when KC and Riley were together. Jackie pulled into a parking spot at a hotel. KC looked up confused.

"We got a hotel room for the day, just for a few hours. It's just so we have a place to go to before we investigate." Jackie said replying to KC's expression.

Riley gently lifted KC off of his lap and on the seat next to him. Riley stood up and led KC out of the car and towards the lobby of the hotel. Sam and Zack woke up and followed Jackie into the hotel a few minutes later. Jackie pointed to a sitting area where Riley and KC were sitting. Sam and Zack walked over and sat down on one of the three large couches. A few minutes later, Jackie left the front desk and walked over to them.

"Ok, well we only have 3 room keys. Why don't all the boys have their own?" Jackie said putting the room keys on the coffee table in the middle of the sitting area.

"Ok" KC replied.

Riley, Sam, and Zack took the plastic cards and put them in their pockets.

"Why don't we go to our room?" Jackie asked.

The group agreed and followed Jackie towards the elevators. To their luck, one had just arrived. They stepped in and pressed the button for their floor. When they had arrived, they turned down a hallway. Jackie stopped in front of one of the doors.

"Here we are. Room 302" Jackie said.

Sam handed his card to Jackie. She slid the card through the small slit and turned the knob. The group stepped in.

"Whoa, nice!" Sam said, deeply satisfied.

"Too bad we're only here for a few hours." Zack said sadly.

"Okay, so what do we wanna do?" Jackie asked the group.

"I wanna go to the arcade downstairs." Sam replied.

"Same here." Zack said looking at Sam.

Jackie looked over at KC and Riley. She decided to be a good sport.

"I'll go with you guys." Jackie said cheerfully.

"Uh ok." KC replied as Jackie, Sam, and Zack walked out of the room. Deep down, she was happy that she and Riley could hang out together. Riley felt the same way.

"So do you just wanna go to the lobby and hang out?" Riley asked her.

"Sure." KC replied with a smile.

A smile grew across Riley's face. He grabbed her hand and led her out the door towards the elevator, with the doors open. Riley led her in and pressed the button.

"Are you sure you just wanna go to the lobby?" Riley asked while they were riding.

"I don't know; I just wanna be with you." KC replied smiling.

"I can live with that." Riley said, smiling and putting his around her shoulders.

"So are we ok with just the lobby then?" KC asked him.

"Actually..." Riley trailed off, trying to remember something.

"What?" KC asked confused.

"You'll see." Riley said grinning, pressing another button.

When the elevator had arrived, KC and Riley stepped into another hallway of rooms. KC looked up at him confused.

"Why are we here? It's just another floor of rooms." KC asked him.

"Just wait." Riley replied, still grinning.

Riley led her down a separate hallway towards the doors of a fitness club. KC opened her mouth to speak but decided against it. Riley left KC's side and walked over to a desk in the middle of the fitness club. He asked the employee something. The employee nodded and pointed to the left. Riley went back over to KC's side and put his arm around her shoulders. He walked her in the direction the employee had pointed out. KC noticed a huge glass door. Riley walked her through it. KC stood in awe when they had turned the corner.

"Like it? I heard about it from Jackie." Riley said with a smile.

"It's beautiful!" KC replied, near tears of joy.

KC looked around at the hedges and beautiful flower beds. Even though it was still raining, KC could hear the gurgling of the fountain. It was the most beautiful roof-top garden she had ever seen. She and Riley sat down on one of the benches. Riley put his arm around KC and pulled her next to him.

"This is the second most beautiful thing I've seen in my life." KC said, still awe from the beauty.

"What's the first most beautiful thing you've ever seen?" Riley asked, confused.

KC looked up at him with a soft smile on her face.

"Your eyes." KC replied with a smile.

Riley stared down at her. KC was lost in his eyes again. Riley gently pressed his lips against hers. KC slowly pulled back a few seconds later. Riley hugged her closer to him. She put her arms around his waist again. They stayed like that, in the comfort of each other, just starring at the beauty. A muffled noise came from the glass door. This caught their attention.

"Guys stop it!" Jackie yelled from behind the door.

Riley and KC got up to see what Jackie was stopping them from, but they had pretty good feeling what they were doing. Through the glass door, Riley and KC saw Jackie struggling to stop Sam and Zack from messing up another moment between KC and Riley. Riley held the door open for KC and followed her over to Jackie. Jackie let go of Zack and Sam as she saw them.

"Nice try Jackie, but they still got us." Riley said.

"Thanks. I came up here to tell you that we should probably leave for the location now, we have about an hour of driving through farmland." Jackie replied.

"Okay." Riley said somewhat upset.

Jackie tossed Riley the keys. Riley looked up at her confused.

"You two get in the car, we'll get the gear. Oh, and don't worry, I'll drive again." Jackie replied with a wink.

Riley and KC smiled at her and turned out of the fitness club. They were in the parking garage in a matter of minutes. KC and Riley took the very back again. From the windshield, they saw Jackie, Sam, and Zack walking towards the car with the bags of equipment. When they had reached the car, they opened the back and through the bags in carelessly. Sam and Zack climbed into row of seats ahead of them and Jackie climbed into the front. She backed out of the parking and maneuvered herself onto the main road. Sam and Zack immediately started watching a movie on the portable DVD player they had brought. Riley and K.C began talking about the investigation. Suddenly, Jackie turned down onto the farm road. KC began to tremble again. Riley pulled her closer to him, trying to comfort her.

"Just remember, _we_ don't have to investigate it." Riley reminded her.

"Okay." KC said, cheering up.

All too soon, Jackie pulled into the driveway of the old farm. Riley helped KC out of the car. She grasped his side for support.

"Okay, so why don't we set up base camp in the foyer of the house." Jackie said grabbing one of the bags of equipment.

"Okay." Riley replied.

Sam opened the door to the farm house. Inside, Jackie, Sam, and Zack unloaded the bags. Sam handed a camera to Riley and handed another one to KC

"KC set up your camera in the library, Riley, you take the bedroom." Sam instructed.

Riley put his arm around her waist and helped her up the stairs. When they got to the top of the stairs, Riley slowly let go of KC

"Riley, don't leave me." KC said, nervously.

"You'll be ok. Just be careful." Riley replied.

"But..." KC begged, but Riley had already turned his back.

She wobbled into library. She looked around at the dusty book cases. Swiftly, she constructed the camera stand and placed the camera on it.

"Looks good KC" Jackie replied through the walkie-talkie.

KC let out a scream from surprise. Riley ran into the library.

"KC!" Riley yelled.

She ran over to his arms. Riley embraced her tightly.

"What happened?" Riley asked, trying to comfort KC

"Well I had just set up the camera and Jackie radioed in and then I saw a shadow." KC replied amongst the tears falling from her eyes.

"Don't worry, I'm here." Riley soothed, looking around the room. Something caught his attention, causing him to pull KC closer to him.

"Oh my gosh!" Riley yelled.

"What?" KC asked, her wet eyes worried.

"I just saw the shadow." Riley said, more alert than ever.

"Riley!" KC whispered, grasping Riley's waist firmly.

"Guys, what's going on in there?" Jackie radioed in from base camp.

"We need to get out of here!" KC blurted out through worried tears.

"Agreed." Riley said quickly.

They bolted for the door. KC hadn't been paying attention to where she was running. She tumbled over a large stack of heavy books. Riley heard the crash and turned his head,

"KC!" Riley screamed in horror.

He ran over to her and placed his arms around her. With one swift movement he stood up holding K.C and ran out of the door. This brought back way too many painful memories for KC

"Riley, I'm not hurt, I'm just scared." KC said from behind a storm of tears.

"I know, but I had to get you out of there." Riley said, reaching base camp.

"Whoa guys! Are you okay?" Sam asked.

"Yeah." Riley replied, setting a broken down KC on the ground.

"Is KC alright?" Sam asked, questioning her wet eyes.

"Well she's not hurt, but she's pretty shook up. She tripped over some books, that's why I was carrying her." Riley replied, sitting down next to KC

Riley pulled her onto his lap. She hid her head in his chest again. He placed his arms on her back in a protective manner. Memories of that awful night were pounding around in KC's head like drums, but Riley's arms slowly eased the pounding. KC looked up, drying her eyes.

"Jackie, why don't you and Sam start investigating?" Riley suggested, still clutching onto KC

"Ok. We'll go investigate the bedroom." Jackie said, grabbing the thermal camera.

"Oh! I'll go with you; I wanna put a live microphone in the hallway." Zack called after them.

"Well then hurry up." Sam called.

Zack grabbed it and ran to catch up with Jackie and Sam. When they were gone, Riley began to gently stroke KC's hair. KC lifted her head up. Riley gently wiped away her tears. She smiled at him.

"So are you okay now?" Riley asked her.

"Yeah." KC replied with a smile.

"That's good." Riley said, gently pressing his lips against hers.

KC pulled back after a few seconds and turned her head swiftly.

"What?" Riley asked confused.

"I just heard the stairs creak." KC said trembling, hiding her head in Riley's chest again.

Riley looked around. He heard another noise from the stairs; he tightened his grip on KC, pulling her closer to him. Then a noise, as if someone was walking, came from the steps above them.

"Hello?" Riley asked into the open air.

"Don't worry, it's just me." Zack said, appearing at the bottom of the stairs.

KC peaked her head up and breathed a sigh of relief.

"What a relief! I thought it was the shadow from the library." KC said.

The radio for base camp radioed in. Zack quickly went over to it and answered it.

"Go for base." Zack said, responding to Sam.

"We're gonna come back; we did some Call and Response and looked around with the thermal camera. There doesn't seem to be much activity going on." Sam replied through his walkie-talkie.

"Ok." Zack responded.

He sat down and examined the cameras and the live microphone. His attention turned to the entrance of base camp when Jackie and Sam walked in. He returned his attention back to the screens when he realized it was just them.

"So how was it?" Riley asked them.

"Nothing really happened." Sam replied, glancing at KC "How was KC?"

"She's okay now." Riley replied back. KC was now cradled on top of him, smiling up at them.

Sam let out a short laugh and went to join Zack with the cameras.

"How about you and KC investigate the library. Someone should go and do Call and Response." Jackie said to Riley.

"Okay." Riley replied, looking down at KC

Riley gently lifted KC off of him and got up. He grabbed the voice recorder and the E.M.F. detector. He walked back over to KC and helped her up. When she and Riley had gotten out of base camp, KC began to get nervous.

"Riley, I can't do this." KC said looking up at him.

"Don't worry. I made a promise to protect you and I intend to keep it." Riley said, grasping KC's hand.

KC still didn't feel any better, especially as Riley opened the library door for her. The library still looked as scary as it had before

"Okay KC, let's do some Call and Response. You hold the E.M.F. detector and see if we get any changes." Riley said handing her the E.M.F. detector.

Riley sat down and took out the voice recorder. KC sat down next to him and held up the E.M.F. detector with shaking hands. She used her other hand to grasp Riley's hand firmly.

"Can you tell me your name?" Riley asked.

"Can you give me a sign that you're here?" Riley asked a few seconds after his other question.

Riley felt the grip of KC's shaky hand tighten. Suddenly, the E.M.F. detector lit up and began to beep.

"Riley!" KC whispered.

"If you're here, could you please stop the E.M.F. detector?" Riley asked.

"Oh my gosh Riley! It stopped." KC said, trembling.

"Did you make the shadow that we saw earlier?" Riley questioned.

After a few seconds Riley turned to KC

"We aren't getting much activity anymore; let's go back to base camp." Riley whispered.

KC could only nod. Riley stood up and helped KC to her feet. She was so shaken up that Riley had to support her. Riley lifted his walkie-talkie to his mouth.

"Riley for base camp." Riley radioed in.

"Go for base." Sam replied, back at base camp.

"We're gonna come back, whatever was here earlier was here but is gone now." Riley said.

"Okay. How's KC?" Sam asked, knowing how freaked out KC was.

"She's a little shaken up but I'm helping her." Riley replied, smiling down at KC

"Okay." Sam replied hanging up his walkie-talkie.

Riley continued to act as a support system for KC until they were out of the library.

"You kept your promise." KC said, smiling at Riley.

"Well, it's one promise that I couldn't break." Riley replied, smiling back at her.

KC just continued to smile until they got back to base camp. As they walked in, they realized that only Sam was at base camp.

"Where are the others?" Riley asked Sam.

"They went on a sweep to the barn." Sam replied, concentrating on the cameras.

"Okay." Riley replied and sat down next to KC, who let out a sigh of relief.

Riley took out his iPod and put one headphone in KC's ear and the other one in his. Riley turned on Lullabies by All Time Low. He paused it when he heard the muffled noise of the radio. Both of them looked up, listening intently.

"What?" Sam said, shocked.

Another noise came from the radio, but KC and Riley couldn't make it out.

"Okay, so what do you wanna do?" Sam asked, trying to figure a plan out.

Sam waited for another noise to come, but one never did. The only noise that was heard was the pounding footsteps of Jackie and Zack running into base camp.

"Why did you guys run back here?" KC asked worriedly.

"We heard some really creepy bangs and we some something weird on the thermal camera. Then we heard footsteps." Jackie replied, panting.

"Okay, well I think we got some really good evidence, so why don't we leave." Riley said standing up.

"Great. I just wanna get the heck out of here." Zack replied, walking over to the cameras.

Within ten minutes, all the equipment was packed up and the cameras had been retrieved. Riley threw the last bag of equipment in the back of the car. He climbed into the back of the car; he had asked Jackie to drive so he could comfort KC Jackie quickly turned onto the dirt road that led to the main roads. Zack and Sam dozed off letting KC and Riley to talk in peace again.

"Riley, thank you." KC said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"For what?" Riley asked confused.

"For keeping you promise." KC replied with a smile.

"You're welcome." Riley responded, putting his arm around her.

* * *


	4. Ruined

"No way!" Sam yelled from across the room.

"I told you." Jackie said with a grin.

The group sat around the table in Riley's garage. They were reviewing the evidence from the night before at the Mackey Farm. Jackie had just played the voice recorder from the library.

"That was the shadow we saw!" KC said, surprised.

"Wait, play it again." Riley said.

"Did you make the shadow we saw earlier?" Riley's voice echoed on the voice recorder. "Mine." an unknown voice echoed back.

"He totally said 'mine'" KC said to Riley.

"I can't think of anything that would've caused that. It's credible for me." Riley said in astonishment.

"Well if you think that was strange, take a look at this." Sam said, taking out the thermal camera.

On the small screen was a yellow barn with a ladder with red rungs, as if someone had been climbing it.

"That is creepy." Zack said, gazing at the screen.

"And no one was up there?" Riley asked Sam.

"No, it wouldn't be able to support the weight of one of us." Sam replied.

"And don't forget about the E.M.F. detector." KC added.

"Yeah, that was creepy." Riley replied.

"Okay so we've looked at all of our evidence, let's make a decision." Riley said, changing the subject.

"This place is definitely haunted. The E.V.P. does it for me." Zack replied.

"I agree with Zack. There was some weird stuff going on here. I think it's haunted." Sam responded

"This place has to be haunted." Jackie replied.

"My experience in the library was enough; haunted." KC responded, looking at Riley.

"Seeing the thermal evidence and the E.V.P. was scary, but what did it for me was seeing get as scared as she did." Riley said, looking back at KC

"Okay; so the Mackey Farm is haunted." Jackie replied.

While Sam began typing and Jackie and Zack started changing the tapes and charging the batteries Riley drew KC aside.

"You wanna go out to dinner tonight?" Riley asked when they were out of hearing range of the others.

"Sure! That sounds great!" KC said excitedly.

"Okay. I'll pick you up at eight." Riley replied with a smile.

9 Hours Later

"Does this look good?" KC asked Jackie, who was in her room.

"I love the dress, but your hair doesn't really match it." Jackie replied.

"What do you mean?" KC asked, standing in front of her mirror.

Jackie came into the view of the mirror. She took the bobby-pins that KC had used to pin up a bun out, causing her hair to fall down.

"That's how you should do your hair." Jackie said, stepping out of the view of the mirror.

"But it looks the way it always does." KC replied, confused.

"KC, stop worrying. You look beautiful." Jackie said, talking some sense into her friend.

"You really think Riley will like it?" KC asked, turning around to face Jackie.

"He'll love it." Jackie responded, smiling.

"Okay good. Now I have to do my makeup." KC responded, running into the bathroom.

"I'll do it. I need to make sure you don't go over the top." Jackie called running after her.

Meanwhile, Sam was over at Riley's house, critiquing Riley's appearance. Riley stepped out of his bathroom wearing a suit.

"Wow Riley. You really know how to clean up." Sam said, acknowledging his appearance.

"Really? I just found this in my closet." Riley questioned.

"Dude, KC will faint when she sees you." Sam complimented.

"What? I don't want her to faint." Riley asked worriedly, not getting the joke.

"No I mean that she'll think you look good." Sam replied.

"Oh okay." Riley said.

"Okay lover boy, time to go pick up KC You don't want to be late." Sam replied, nudging Riley.

"Okay!" Riley said, walking towards his door.

"Uh Riley, aren't you forgetting something." Sam said pointing to his car keys and wallet.

Riley walked over and grabbed them.

"Okay, am I forgetting anything else?" Riley asked himself.

"No Riley. Just go pick up KC" Sam said, grinning at Riley's forgetfulness.

"Okay." Riley said, exiting his room in a swift walk.

Back at KC's house, Jackie was just finishing up KC's makeup. She knew that KC was so nervous that she would try so hard to make herself look good but end up completely messing up her natural beauty. Jackie moved the open end of a tube of lipstick from KC's lips. She took a step back to admire her work, but KC was already admiring it.

"Jackie! I love it!" KC said with deep satisfaction.

"Thank you. Now, go downstairs so you can answer the door when Riley comes." Jackie replied with a grin.

KC grabbed her purse and took a look at herself in the mirror one more time. She admired the sapphire floor length dress that Jackie had helped her pick out and how her hair and make-up worked together so well. She turned to Jackie and hugged her. Jackie returned the hug.

"You look beautiful KC" Jackie replied with a smile.

"Thank you." KC said cheerfully, and walked through the door.

The door bell chimed just as KC reached the bottom of the stairs. KC ran over to it and opened it eagerly, a smile on her face. Her smile grew when she saw Riley's back turned and talking to himself.

"Okay, did I forget anything?" Riley asked himself.

"Yes, your girlfriend." KC said with a laugh.

Riley turned around in surprise.

"Oh, sorry. I'm just really nervous." Riley said, turning red.

"You're nervous too?" KC asked surprised.

Both of them began laughing.

"We've been nervous this whole time for no reason." KC said, also turning red.

"Let's just try to enjoy ourselves." Riley said, taking KC's hand.

"I'd love that." KC said with a smile.

Riley led KC toward his car parked in KC's driveway. Unknown to them, Jackie was watching the whole thing from KC's window. She was texting Sam everything.

_he just picked her up and is goin to restaurant now_

Sam began texting back.

_should i spy on them?_

Jackie immediately texted back

_ya :] ill come and lets bring zack lol he'll like that ;)_

Sam texted back his acceptance and called Zack. Jackie pulled in front of Sam's house. Sam was waiting on his porch with two cameras. When he saw Jackie, he immediately ran over to her car and hopped into the front seat. Jackie backed out of Sam's driveway and drove another block towards Zack's house. Within a few minutes, Jackie, Sam, and Zack were driving to the restaurant that KC had told Jackie about.

Meanwhile, Riley and KC were just arriving at the restaurant. Riley parked the car and quickly walked around the hood. He opened KC's door and helped her out. He led her through the large groups of people outside and inside to the podium.

"Riley for 2." Riley told the host behind the podium.

The host scanned his book. "Oh yes. Right this way." he replied leading KC and Riley through a row of tables.

The host led them towards the back of the restaurant. He stopped and motioned to a small booth. Riley helped KC sit down and then took a seat himself. The host set the menus on the table and walked off. Riley picked it up and began reading it. He glanced over the top and found KC staring at something behind him with a confused expression.

"KC?" Riley asked, just as confused as she was.

KC returned her gaze to Riley, but still looked confused.

"I could've sworn I just saw Jackie." KC said.

"Not her too." Riley replied, thinking about the pranks that Sam and Zack have pulled.

"I doubt it was her; she wouldn't do that." KC said reassuringly.

"I guess you're right." Riley said, grabbing KC's hand from across the table.

Their waiter came over to them and took their drink orders. When he was gone, KC began to speak to Riley.

"So where are we investigating next week?" KC asked Riley, trying to break the silence.

"KC, we just finished one today, we don't even have some places to start with." Riley replied.

"Whoa, I think I just saw Sam holding a camera and then run the other way." KC said, looking around.

"They're probably pulling another prank. Why don't I just take you home?" Riley replied grimly.

"No, I want to stay here with you." KC protested.

"No, I should just take you home. It's not fair to you that they are doing this." Riley said looking down.

"But..." KC started, but stopped when she saw the waiter coming back.

"Do we owe you anything? Something came up and we have to leave." Riley said to the waiter.

"No you don't; you can just leave." the waiter replied and walked away.

Riley stood up and helped KC up. They didn't hold hands on their way to the car. They sat in awkward silence the ride back to KC's house.

"Um, goodnight Riley." KC said, getting out of the car when they had reached her house.

She closed the car door and walked to her front door. When she had unlocked it, she turned around and waved to Riley. Riley waved back and drove away. KC immediately went to her room and took her makeup off. She changed out of her dress and into a navy tank top and a pair of shorts. She went over to her bed and sat down. She pulled her knees to her chest and thought about the events that had occurred about 45 minutes ago. Her thoughts shifted to her phone as it rang. Jackie had texted her. As she read it, tears of disbelief began to fill her eyes:

_whered u go and riley go?_

KC's hand opened, letting her phone fall to the floor. She sat down and moved her knees to her chest again. Single tears began to slide down her face. She couldn't believe that Jackie had participated in one of Sam's and Zack's pranks. She almost didn't look at her phone when it rang again. She dried her eyes and glanced at the screen. She opened her phone when she realized it was a text from Riley.

_meet me at bus stop in 5_

KC got up and walked to her dresser. She dug through it and found a blue plaid button down shirt. She slipped it, using it as a jacket over the tank top she was wearing. She didn't bother to button it up. KC grabbed her phone, slipped on a pair of flip-flops, and ran down the steps. She sprinted out of her front door and ran a block to the bus stop. When she saw Riley, her new destination was his arms. When she was a few feet away from him, Riley opened his arms and KC ran into them. She wrapped her own arms around him.

"So why did you want me to meet you here? The buses don't run this late." KC said, reluctantly releasing Riley's warm embrace.

"I wanna take you somewhere." Riley said with a smile.

He motioned his car parked a few feet away. They both got into his car and Riley began to drive. After about 30 minutes later, Riley parked in a dark lot. He helped KC out of the car and onto what appeared to be sand.

"Riley? Where are we?" KC asked, blinking her eyes in the darkness.

"We're at the beach." Riley replied, smiling at her.

"At night?" KC asked him.

"Yup." Riley replied, leading her down an old, wooden staircase that led to the sandy coast.

KC and Riley stepped onto the sand and sat down a few feet from the tide.

"It's so peaceful here." KC said, staring at the dark waves.

"I know, it's a nice to place to just relax and think." Riley responded, looking up the empty coastline.

KC looked up at Riley, who was looking back at her.

"It's also nice place to do this." KC said breathlessly.

She gently pressed her lips against Riley's. Riley put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. KC put her wrists on Riley's shoulders, letting her hands dangle. They both pulled back when they felt the coldness of the water touch their bare feet. They both looked at their feet and then back at each other. KC smiled and stood up, grabbing Riley's hand. She and Riley ran into the waves, not caring about how wet they were getting from the splashes of water. KC ran farther into the waves, but something ran into her foot, causing it to stop abruptly. She closed her eyes, but opened them when she felt a different coldness take over her body. Her vision slowly blurred into the darkness of the water. Slowly, KC's hearing began to dim. The last thing she heard was a horrified voice calling her name and then the background noises went silent.


	5. An Awakening

**Well here it is. =) I'm gonna continue to work on chpt 6 so I can get it out soon. It's gonna be funny! =)**

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KC's eyes slowly opened into a bright light. When her eyes focused, she realized she was starring at a white ceiling...strange. She tilted her head and looked at the rectangular blinds letting rays of sun shining from the window. She tilted her head the other direction, trying to figure out where she was. She had only tilted her head a little when something her head from moving any further. She looked down at her neck and saw a tube that led up to her face. She looked down at her arm and saw about 10 tubes taped to it. She moved her eyes up from her arm and to her feet and noticed that many unfamiliar blankets. Where was she? This room began to seem familiar, but she couldn't remember anything else about it. She heard a creak from the door. She tilted her head over to the door as much as she could. Her viewing point was only of the door, but it was enough to see something that she yearned to see for what seemed like an eternity.

"KC?" Riley asked, quietly closing the door behind him.

"Riley!" KC said as excitedly as she could.

Riley rushed to her side. When Riley had reached her, KC threw her arms around him. Riley gently returned the embrace.

"Where are my parents?" KC asked him, burying her face in his shoulder.

"They're at work; they couldn't get off work to see you." Riley replied.

"Where am I?" K.C asked, giving up on trying to figure the room out on her own.

"You're in the hospital KC" Riley replied, gently stroking her hair.

"What? Why?" KC asked, suddenly confused.

"You don't remember do you? At the beach last night, you ran into the waves and tripped. You fell beneath the water. I had to dive in and save you." Riley murmured.

"Riley, you saved my life." KC said, removing her face from his shoulder and staring into his eyes.

"I guess I did." Riley replied with a smile.

Another creak came from the door. KC and Riley looked up to see the face of the doctor.

"KC, I came to see how you were doing." he said.

"Uh, I'm fine, I guess." KC replied back.

"Okay well let me just check your breathing." he replied.

Riley took at step back and let the doctor stand close to KC He took out his stethoscope and it to KC neck. He held it there for a few seconds, listening to KC's breathing. He removed it from her neck and put it back around his collar. He pulled the clipboard off the end of KC's hospital bed and jotted something down.

"Well KC, your breathing is back to normal again." he said, putting the clipboard down.

"It was messed up?" KC asked.

"Yes. You were having a lot of trouble earlier. Anyway, how are you feeling?" the doctor questioned.

"Fine I guess." KC said, glancing over at Riley.

"Okay, well I will check on you in a few hours." the doctor said, and walked out of the room.

When he had closed the door, Riley hurried back over to KC's side.

"So where are the others?" KC asked Riley.

"Um well, they're at school." Riley responded.

"You ditched school for me?" KC asked, shocked.

"No, they let stay with you because you were gonna be alone today." Riley replied.

"You know what I've realized," KC sresponded, staring deeply into Riley's eyes, "that the only time we're alone is when I'm stuck here."

"It does seem that way." Riley said looking down.

"But I don't care because I love you Riley." KC said weaving her fingers in Riley's hair.

"I knew I was going to fall in love with you the day I met you." Riley replied, gazing into KC's satin eyes.

Riley gently planted his lips on KC's. KC returned the kiss with the same gentleness as Riley. When they broke free for air, KC suddenly had an ingenious idea.

"Oh my gosh Riley!" KC said excitedly. "I have an amazing idea."

"What?" Riley asked.

"Well I was researching last week and I came across this place, only 20 minutes away. It's like some haunted school thing and it has to separate buildings to investigate." KC responded with a smile.

"Oh I see." Riley said, nodding. "We investigate one building and Sam, Zack, and Jackie investigate the other one.

"Yeah, exactly." KC replied, smiling.

"So what are the two buildings we would investigate?" Riley asked.

"Well there's a small dormitory and then the school it's self." KC replied.

"Yeah, we would need to separate investigations to cover the whole property." Riley said, referring to his knowledge about ghost hunting.

"Well I'm expected to get out of here tonight. Maybe we could research it a little later." KC replied.

"Yeah. Let's do that." Riley replied, smiling.

4 Days Later

"These are some pretty scary reports." Sam said starring at the abandoned warehouse on the Zack's computer screen.

"Let's definitely keep this place in mind." KC said, putting a star next to its name on the chalkboard.

"Okay, so are we ready to make a choice?" Jackie asked, looking at the full chalkboard.

"Well actually, before we make a choice, I wanna show you a really interesting place I read about." Riley said, getting out some printed reports about the school that KC had suggested 4 days ago.

Riley set the papers down on the table in the middle of the room. Everyone began reading the reports thoroughly. If Riley thought this place was creepy, then it definitely had to have some pretty convincing reports. KC looked up at Riley and winked at him. KC could tell the others were very taken by this place.

"Wow, that has more reports than any of the other locations." Zack said, looking up from the papers.

"Isn't it a good place?" Riley asked.

"This place looks promising. I have a feeling that we're gonna get some good stuff." Jackie said, scanning the articles in front of her.

"Okay, so we'll investigate here this week." KC said, winking at Riley again.

Within half an hour, the team was packed up and driving along a twisted highway.

"I love the farmland." Jackie said, gazing at the land surrounding the highway.

"I'm not too fond of the smell." KC responded, putting the sleeve of her sweatshirt over her nose.

"So KC," Riley called from the driver's seat, "are you scared of libraries now?"

KC studied the thoughts that were going through her head. The thoughts of the events that occurred at the library began swirling around her head. She looked up at Riley's headrest.

"No, I'm not. Why?" KC replied.

"I just wanted to know because I know one of the paranormal hot spots is a library." Riley responded, focusing on the road ahead of him.

"Oh. Okay." KC replied, suddenly feeling uneasy.

"Riley swiftly turned the steering wheel, turning onto an exit ramp.

"Where are we?" Sam asked, looking around at the run down building thorough his window.

"Where the directions are telling me to go." Riley said, taking another glance at the papers next to him.

"This doesn't look like the place we saw online." Zack said, critiquing the surroundings.

"Oh. Wow am I stupid." Riley said, slapping his forehead.

"Why?" KC asked, noticing Riley's reaction.

"We had to get off at Exit 33 and I got off at Exit 27." Riley replied, turning the car around.

"How did you confuse 33 with 27?" Zack asked as Riley turned the car towards the highway.

"I have no idea." Riley replied honestly.

In a few minutes, the group was back on the highway. As they drove past the exits, the surroundings began to look more like neighborhoods. Riley turned down the exit ramp that the directions described. Even though the car was about 2 miles from the school, it was still viewable from where they a where.

"No wonder you choose this place Riley; this place is creepy." Sam said from the back.

"Well that wasn't my only reason..." Riley said, laughing to himself.

Riley continued to drive down the main road. Slowly, the school became more and more visible. Riley expertly maneuvered himself into a parking place in front of the school. The group stepped out of the car and looked up at the school. The bricks on the outside had been worn down. To the side of the 2-story school were the small dorm buildings.

"Okay, why don't we just set up base camp here?" Riley said, gesturing to a spot under a tree next to the entrance of the school.

"So now that we've established a place for base camp, where should we put the cameras?" Jackie asked, setting down a bag of gear.

"What if we have to separate investigations going; you guys investigate the school and me and KC will investigate the dorms." Riley replied.

"Okay. So let's go and set up the cameras." Jackie said, getting 2 cameras out of the bag she had just set down.

"So for the school go set up a cameras in the cafeteria, hallway, library, and Room 202." Riley instructed.

Jackie handed 2 cameras to Sam.

"We'll be right back." Sam said, entering the school.

"Okay KC, you take the hallway and the recreation room in the girl's dorms; I'll do the same with the boys dorms." Riley said, grabbing 2 cameras.

KC nodded and grabbed the remaining cameras. She followed Riley through the overgrown brush that surrounded the walk to the dorms. KC turned into the dusty glass doors when she had reached the girl's dormitory. She shuffled across the carpet and into the recreation room. She evaluated the room, trying to figure out where to point the camera. She grabbed the camera stand that she had brought and adjusted it, focusing it at the lounge area. She placed the camera on it and connected it back to base camp. She hurried out of the room, towards the door she had come in. In front of the entrance, she set the camera up swiftly. She wired it and exited the building and back to base camp. Riley had just finished setting up the last camera in the hallway. He held his walkie-talkie next to his mouth.

"Riley for base."

A muffled noise came from the walkie-talkie.

"Hello?" Riley asked.

Suddenly his walkie-talkie died. Riley looked at it and hurried back to base. Everyone had finished setting up when he returned.

"Where were you?" Jackie asked him.

"I was setting up the cameras but the strangest thing happened. My walkie died." Riley replied, giving his walkie-talkie to her.

"What?" KC said, looking up from fiddling with the thermal camera.

"I heard a strange noise and then it just died." Riley replied, sitting down next to KC

"Riley, what are you talking about? It works fine." Jackie said, handing the walkie-talkie back to Riley.

"You're kidding." Riley said, taking the walkie-talkie from her hand.

"Well people say that spirits can mess with electronics." Sam said, turning around from the cameras.

"I think we know where our first sweep is." KC said, standing up.

"I guess you're right." Riley replied, standing up as well.

"Take the thermal camera, hot and cold spots are one of the reports." Jackie said, tossing one to Riley.

"Okay, we'll be back soon." KC replied and followed Riley up the same path they had gone up earlier.

"So what happened to your walkie?" KC asked as they walked.

"I don't know. It just died." Riley said, looking at it.

"That's just like the time when my walkie broke in the battery at Fort McArthur.

By now they had arrived to the boys' dormitory. Riley opened the dusty glass door and led KC through it.

"Right there," Riley said, pointing to the middle of the hallway.

KC grabbed the thermal and began to look around with it. Riley took out the digital camera and began to take pictures.

"Riley? Does this look like anything to you?" KC asked, focusing on the side of the screen.

"Whoa, what is that?" Riley exclaimed, examining the bright colored screen.

"Is that the door panel?" KC asked focusing on the rectangular hot spot.

"You know what? That's the bottom of the door." Riley said, adjusting the angle of his head.

"Could it be something?" KC asked, grabbing his hand tightly.

"I don't know. Why don't we go in there and look around." Riley said, looking up from the thermal camera.

"What? I don't want to go in there." KC whispered, tightening her grip.

"Don't worry; I'm right next to you." Riley said, leading towards the front of the door. KC suddenly felt a wave of courage flood her emotions. She smiled in the darkness and moved her shaky hand towards the rusted doorknob.

"Ouch!" KC whispered, yanking her hand back.

"What? Is the doorknob hot?" Riley asked, looking at her hand.

"No, I didn't even touch the doorknob. Something like poked me." KC replied examining her hand. Riley looked at the door for a moment.

"I don't see anything. Let's do some Call and Response here and then we'll go in." Riley replied, helping KC sit down.

"Why don't you point the thermal camera at the door." KC suggested.

"Good idea." Riley responded handing the voice recorder to her. KC switched it on and leaned her head on Riley's shoulder. Riley smiled and began to speak.

"I'm Riley and this is KC. What's your name?"

"Is this your dorm?" KC asked after a few moments of silence. KC lifted her head off of Riley's shoulder. Riley turned his head to look at her.

"Did you hear that?"

"No, what did you hear?"

"I think I just heard like a door creaking." KC whispered. Riley turned his head and looked at the thermal camera.

"Could you please give us a sign?" Riley asked. KC looked over Riley's shoulder at the camera.

"Riley, look!" KC whispered. Riley's eyes shot to the colorful screen. The crack underneath the door was still yellow, but there were to white hot spots that looked like feet.

"We have to go in there." Riley said standing up with KC. KC was so filled with fear that she couldn't speak against Riley. Riley stepped towards the door and pressed his fingers against the doorknob. He turned them gently, letting the door swing freely on its hinges. Riley led KC into the empty, dusty room. KC began taking pictures all over the room. After a few moments, KC and Riley came together.

"Let's just do a little Call and Response, then we can get out of here." Riley said, taking the voice recorder out again. They didn't bother sitting down this time.

"Did you see us in the hall a few minutes ago?" Riley asked, not bothering to introduce KC and himself. He had a feeling whatever was here already knew who they were from earlier.

"Why are you still here?" KC asked quietly.

"Were you standing in front of the door earlier?" Riley continued. After a few seconds of silence, KC turned to Riley.

"You wanna go?"

"No, not yet. I have a strange feeling something is gonna happen." He replied, putting his arm around her protectively.

"Oh my gosh!" KC whispered. "Something just stepped on my foot."

Riley grabbed the thermal camera and began looking at her foot. KC began to take pictures.

"Well I'm not really seeing anything, let's just go." Riley said after a few moments.

"Agreed." KC said worriedly. Riley and KC ran out of the dorm and back to base camp. They slowed to a walk when they were a few feet away. They took their packs off and sat down, panting.

"Sam and Zack are on their way back." Jackie said, amongst the cameras. "They're picking up the cameras on the way back."

"Wow, how long were we gone?" KC asked. Riley took out his cell phone and examined the illuminated screen.

"We were sweeping for an hour and a half." Riley replied, putting his phone back into his pocket.

"I'm okay with that." KC replied, smiling. Sam and Zack were just walking into base camp now. That was the cue to head towards the car. KC huddled next to Riley as they walked back. When they arrived, Sam and Zack climbed into the far back of the car. Jackie took up the middle row of the seats and fell asleep. KC and Riley loaded up the car.

"I totally just realized we forgot to set a camera up in the library." Riley said, closing the trunk.

"Oh well. We probably got tons of good evidence from our sweep." KC replied, walking around the car with Riley. KC opened the back door on the driver's side and found Jackie sprawled out across the three seats.

"Well I guess I'll just have to sit with you. I mean we don't want to wake our dear friend Jackie." KC said jokingly happy. She walked around to the other side of the car and climbed into the passenger of the front. She was asleep within 10 minutes.

The Next Morning

"C'mon guys. WAKE UP!" Sam said, kicking Riley, who was asleep on the floor of the family.

"No." Riley replied stubbornly.

"God, they're like rocks." Sam said turning around towards Zack and Jackie.

"They always area when they're together." Jackie said, and walked over to KC.

"KC? C'mon wake up." Jackie pleaded.

"Nah, I'm fine right where I am." KC replied just as stubbornly as Riley.

"I've got an idea." Zack said with a grin. "Let's pull a prank on them."

"I have the perfect prank." Sam said excitedly, and proceeded to telling Sam and Jackie his idea.


	6. The Wet and the Whispering

**Well this chapter isn't as big as I thought it was gonna be...chapter 7 is most likely going to be what I didn;t put in this chapter...but I've kept you guys waiting long enough lol. Here it is! =]**

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"Ready?" Jackie whispered over the birds that were chirping around them. Jackie, Sam, and Zack had somehow moved KC and Riley outside when they had fallen back asleep.

"Yup. Zack do have the video camera?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, we're recording now." Zack said, pointing the camera towards KC and Riley.

"Okay. So love birds KC and Riley didn't wannna leave each others' arms this morning so we've decided to pull a little prank on them." Jackie said, speaking into the camera. "C'mon Zack." She whispered over the camera. Sam and Jackie walked over to a sleeping KC and Riley.

"This ought to wake them up." Sam said, holding up a bucket of water.

"Okay, ready Sam?" Jackie asked, standing next to KC.

"Yup."

"1-2-3 dump!" they yelled together and turned their buckets upside down. The chilled water came out of there buckets in a large gush, covering everything. KC cringed at the chill of the water and shot her eyes open. Riley reacted the same way, except he sat up.

"What the heck!?!?"

"You and KC wouldn't wake up so we improvised." Sam said with a grin. Riley just shook his head and stood up. He turned around and helped a shaking KC up. Riley moved his hands through his soaked hair, trying to dry it out. KC took her braids out and began to ring out the waves in her hair.

"We'll be in HQ." Jackie said, taking the camera and walking towards the house. Sam and Zack followed her into HQ while KC and Riley went to change and get dried off. The screen of Zack's laptop showed their website.

"Okay so let's get this footage put up on the website before the lovers come back." Jackie said with a laugh. Sam took the camera and plugged it into the side of the laptop.

"Okay, so it is up on the website right...now." Sam said, clicking furiously across the screen.

"Our fans will get a kick out of this one." Zack said with a grin.

"Just wait until KC and Riley find out." Jackie replied, pulling up a blank word document. At that moment, KC and Riley walked in as almost as on cue.

"Speaking of KC and Riley..." Jackie said, holding back a laugh.

"What about us." Riley asked, his hand tightening on KC's back.

"Oh nothing, nothing at all." Sam said, beaming.

"Whatever. Let's get to work." KC said excitedly. She walked over to a stool next to the table and sat down. Riley sat down next to her, smiling.

"Okay, so wants voice recorders?" Jackie asked, looking at the long list of events that had been written at base camp the night before.

"Um, I guess I'll take them." KC said, taking them out of Jackie's hand.

"I will take the camera footage. Since you guys did different areas, you can cover your part." Riley suggested, taking the cameras that were stationed in the dorms. KC smiled at Riley and put a pair of headphones on. Riley started to view the camera footage. The rest of the group got to work, deep in thought about what they were viewing.

6 Hours Later

A long, vigorous day of footage had been burned through now and their findings were being discovered. So far they had found an EVP from the library, some hot spots in the auditorium, and some questionable camera footage from the hallway. Now it was time for KC's and Riley's evidence.

"Okay, well this was from call and response in the boys' dorm hallway." Riley stated, starting the clip of audio.

"Is this your dorm?" Riley's voice echoed through the speakers.

"Yes." A hushed voice whispered. KC stood up straight.

"I totally heard that. I have a feeling that was the thing that stepped on my foot." She said, drumming her fingers on the table. EVP after EVP was revealed from the call and response that night. After about half an hour of EVP evidence, the group was finished. Their decision wasn't very hard; something was constantly responding to them. Even Riley agreed that the place was haunted. Sam had begun typing up the definition. Suddenly the camera crew came in. KC was the first to notice.

"Yes?" she asked suddenly. Riley looked up and saw the familiar faces of the crew.

"Sit down guys, we have a surprise for you." The manager said.


	7. You're Kidding?

**Rawrz! After the (very,very,very,very,ect...) long wait....it's here! :D and i'm publishing this to make up for the fact i didnt publish a chapter for 12 days of christmas (12DOC) yesterday! I was super busy and then I had to also get a prom dress (it's so pretty :D) then christmas card post office runs for my mom; yesterday was pretty much a day helping my mom an well going to the mall :P but for now enjoy chapter 7 :D i highly doubt that it'll take this long for the next chapter to be published and now im going to work on 12DOC and shut up cuz this authors note is extremely long so yes....plz review! =]**

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"We've decided that it's time you kids leave the southern Californian area and go explore elsewhere." The manager said, starring at the teens in front of him. Riley paced in the back of the room, the rest of the team in front of him.

"Well where would we go? It would take a lot of research on Jackie's part." KC finally said, breaking the silence.

"Well, where do you want to go?"

"Hmmm. What about New York?" Sam suggested.

"Whoa, wait a minute," Riley said putting his hands up, "let's say we do go to New York, how would we get all of our gear and car over there?"

"We could fly you kids out and have your car and gear moved there." The director mentioned.

"New York would be amazing." KC mused.

"Well, with the gear and everything covered, I'm sold." Riley said, his pacing halted.

"New York it is." The director announced.

"I will make plans for the day after tomorrow." A secretary said, and quickly exited the garage. The rest of the directors and managers nodded and followed her. It took a moment for the atmosphere to clear of silence.

"Did that really just happen?" Sam asked in disbelief.

"Yes, I think it did." Zack replied, staring blankly in front of him.

"Okay, well we have two tasks to do now; research and packing." Riley announced trying to restore order back to the team.

"Okay, well I'll work with Jackie on finding some places. You guys should probably go home and start packing and planning." KC said motioning towards them.

"Are you sure it won't be too hard on you?"Riley asked, concerned about their well being.

"We'll be fine, I mean after all it is our job. You guys just go and get ready." Jackie responded, her words convincing Riley enough to leave.

"Well okay, just don't get too stressed out and-" Riley cautioned.

"We'll be fine Riley, just go get packed up and ready." KC interrupted, pushing him towards his house. He had just now realized that Sam and Zack had listened to the girls upon their first request; they were gone. He gave another cautioned look to them. KC sent back a cute trust-me look with her eyes. Riley reluctantly gave up and turned into his house.

"He's always looking out for us." Jackie said jokingly.

"Well it's better than never being there at all." KC replied smiling and logged onto . Unknown to them Riley had heard what they said about him and was able to start packing with an easier feeling.

A Few Hours Later

Jackie held her cell phone next to her ear and was talking to someone.

"That would be...wonderful." she said beyond excited. As she said that, KC walked back into headquarters.

"Okay, thank you so much." Jackie ended and hung up the phone.

"Who was that?" KC asked setting down a few papers. Jackie whispered in her ear who was on the phone.

"You're kidding!" KC said now excited.

"I know right! The guys are going to be so surprised!" Jackie responded and closed the laptop; they had the place they were going to investigate.

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***Evil Laugh* cliff hanger! :P dont worry i will publish again soon! =]**


	8. Ahh, Our Men

**It's here! Finally? I'm a bad writer :( I promise to write more for you guys but school's just been crazy =[ But no worries :) I'm back and more chapters are on the way =] xoxo, Lauren =]**

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The sun perked its head over the horizon; the neighborhood's houses filling with light. But KC was already up and almost out the door. With suitcases in hand, she stepped out into the coldness of six in the morning and dropped her bags on the porch. Riley was going to be there soon and then their adventure would start. She amused herself with her iTouch until the well recognized car pulled up in front of her house. She shoved the iTouch in the pocket of her usual sweatshirt and galloped outside. Riley got out of the front and took her bag and stacked it painstakingly on top of Jackie and Sam's bags. KC climbed into the back seat, next to Jackie, and Riley started towards Zack's house. A few turns later, they were outside Zack's house and a half-asleep Zack was walking down the entryway. He dropped his bag in front of Riley and climbed into the farthest back seat. His plans included sleeping...for awhile. With Zack asleep and Sam groggy in the front, the ride was very quiet except for the soft murmur of the radio. The excitement that was building was going to have to be contained until later. After about an hour of highways, rush hour, and that darn radio, the group arrived at LAX. Working their way into the airport and through security was fairly difficult. And yet, they made it to their gate with a lot of time to spare.

"So guys, where are we going?" Riley asked, out of the blue. KC looked up from her iPod; Jackie just looked at him. Both of their faces gave off a random-much expression. KC tugged the ear buds out of her ears and thought of an answer to his question.

"Well, we're actually investigating a few places. We're investigating an abandoned house tomorrow and then an old firehouse that burned down. Both of them have crazy reports-like in the firehouse, people have actually been hurt or like burned from investigating." KC stated, cleverly avoiding her and Jackie's surprise.

"What about the third one?" Riley asked. It was obvious he had detected the "few" in KC last sentence. KC looked at Jackie and exchanged confused looks.

"It's a surprise." Jackie said cleverly but uncertain. But it was enough for Riley to hold his peace...or it might have been the announcer calling out that their flight would be boarding in 2 minutes. The team assembled into numerical order-coincidently in the order of their intro- and walked over to the jet way. All of them handed their tickets to a lady with a toothy grin and quickly paced down the jet way-the excitement was beginning to leak out. They all made their way into their seats-KC and Jackie, Riley and Sam behind them, and Zack in his own row of two. Zack didn't mind being alone; he had more room to relax. The final people began to load and then the doors were closed and locked tight. The plane jerked backwards as a female flight attendant began to list the required safety information. The plane was moving forward by time the lady was done. And then-the thrust. The thrust that everyone of them loved. The rush of gliding at immense speeds. The feeling of weightlessness as the ground fell away and they became airborne. Now it was just a matter of waiting until electronics would be allowed-no teenager could make a 6 hour flight without electronics. KC and Jackie were relieved when the bud-dink noise bleeped signaling electronic freedom. Another flight attendant-a male- began speaking letting everyone know that electronics were allowed but no cell phones or anything. But then he said something that caught the girls' attention. Oddly enough, there was Wi-Fi ON the plane. Now they were able to look more into their "surprise" instead of just looking over prerecorded research. Jackie and KC began to add more to the research they already have. They were about 3 hours into the clouds when KC felt her seat jerk back slightly. She turned her head to see Riley trying to get a view of the monitor of the laptop they were working on. KC and Jackie laughed as he realized he had been caught.

"It's a surprise," Jackie convinced, "you can wait."

"And if I can't?" Riley responded jokingly. KC rolled her eyes and giggled. For the rest of the time in the air, it was a constant war of Sam and Riley trying to figure out the mystery location. And yet, the girls remained victorious. And Zack, well he just grinned at the amusement that Sam and Riley had stirred up over the girls.

Back On The Ground

The five of them stepped off the plane and into the 2 PM sun filling the JFK airport. Their luggage came rather quickly and their escort to the hotel was ready for them. They all had a heated debate on Team Edward and Team Jacob and proceeded to laugh when Sam asked "What about Team Sam?".

The taxi pulled under a covered driveway and let the team out. They called on a bellhop and were lead to their rooms: connected rooms. As the girls settled into their room, they laughed as they heard the boys arguing who had to sleep on the sofa bed.

"Ahh, such men." Jackie sighed and laughed.

"Yes but they're our men." KC replied jokingly.

"Anyway, everything is in place for our third location?" Jackie asked, changing the subject.

"Mhm hmm. I can't wait to see the guys' reactions when we tell them." KC said, picturing it in her head.

"Oh they'll be surprised. Afterall it is such an honor," Jackie responded but was interrupted by a crash from the next room, "Well we better go see what they're doing before they break something."

They both laughed and walked towards the sound of the crash.


	9. Stage Fright

**Okay, you guys can slap me. I was supposed to have this done a while ago...and I feel really bad. But I'm working on Chapter 10 and I have like 3 things to upload tonight so yeah...AP Math takes up allota freaking time D:**

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The clock in the taxi cab showed that it was a good time for a first night in New York. And the team had taken advantage of the opportunity. They were heading down to Times Square to see some show that their hotel advertised the heck out of. They figured why not give it a shot. And so they all crammed into a taxi cab.

"Okay, who liked 2012?" Zack asked.

"Dude, it was awesome!" Sam and Riley yelled at the same time.

"Yeah, cheesy effects and an unrealistic plot sound really awesome." Jackie countered.

"Jackie, it was awesome!" Sam argued.

"Wow, it seems like debates are very popular this trip." KC said jokingly.

"Oh yeah!" Jackie said and high-fived KC.

"Hey guys, I think we're here." Riley said.

"So this show is supposed to be like one that gets the audience involved because there's usually only like 50 people in the audience." Sam announced.

"Sounds pretty cool; I'm up for it." Zack said, unbuckling his seatbelt.

"Then what are we waiting for, let's go!" Riley cheered. He opened the cab's left door and helped KC out. Riley quickly paid the driver and they headed into the unusual theater.

"It's so small." KC said softly while she gazed at the dark walls.

"I think it's bigger inside...see; look." Riley said as the group stepped into a large, dark room filled with red, quilted, velvet seats. A voice boomed through the speakers, just as they entered, saying everyone take their seats. The team took the front row just as the curtain lifted revealing a Broadway actress named Selena. For the first half hour, she just introduced herself and sang a song from a Broadway that had been released. It hadn't been that exciting until she needed 2 volunteers.

"Okay, now that you know me. I need two people to come up on stage and help me sing a song." Selena said as she picked up two other microphones. She looked around for a while until she understood that no one was going to volunteer.

"Okay, how about you two in the front. Yes you two! Get up here!" she cheered as she looked at Sam and Jackie. They weren't too crazy about it but they figured it would be fun. They walked over to the side and climbed the stairs onto the stage.

"Okay, so you two will need these, and you stand here and you stand there." Selena said as she handed them the microphones and placed them in front of each other.

"So you guys are familiar with the movie Aladdin right?" Selena asked with a tad of joke in her voice. They both nodded with a confused look on their face.

"Okay, good." Selena said with a wink and cued the music director to start the music.

"Oh my gosh, I recognize this song." Sam whispered.

"I do too; now start singing." Jackie said softly.

I can show you the world  
Shining, shimmering, splendid  
Tell me, princess, now when did  
You last let your heart decide?

I can open your eyes  
Take you wonder by wonder  
Over, sideways and under  
On a magic carpet ride

A whole new world  
A new fantastic point of view  
No one to tell us no  
Or where to go  
Or say we're only dreaming

A whole new world  
A dazzling place I never knew  
But when I'm way up here  
It's crystal clear  
That now I'm in a whole new world with you  
Now I'm in a whole new world with you

Jackie grasped Sam's hand out of nervousness as her part came up.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked, worried.

"I can't do this; I'm sorry." She let go of his hand and ran off stage. Selena saw the chaos and finished the song with Sam. But he couldn't stop thinking of Jackie; and how beautiful she looked under the spotlight.


End file.
